Why It's OK To Let Kids Help Out In The Kitchen | Cherishing The Messy Moments

It was just a normal Sunday afternoon. My DH was out of town on business and it was just the Little Made Man and I. I was feeling rather Pinterest-y and I had an idea. “Let’s make a cake!” I said. I started gathering up the necessary stuff: measuring spoons, bowls, flour, eggs, etc. And then, my doorbell rang. I went to see who it was. It was just Donna, my over-talkative neighbor, wanting to ask me if I had heard the house next door had just been sold to the cousin of the guy that was building that big house on the corner. No, I didn’t know that. Yes, I was going to miss the Garcias that had just moved out. No I didn’t know their son had finally gotten a job with the city.

Finally, Donna needed to let me go because her landscaper pulled into her driveway. I said goodbye to Donna and walked back into the kitchen.

And I walked into this:

My kitchen looked like it had just been taken over by one of those color runs where everyone that runs gets pelted with blasts of colored power. Only there was no color. There was only white. White flour everywhere. All over the wood kitchen table, all over the floor, and all over my kid.

I just stood there, my eyes desperately trying to tell my brain not to freak out.

“Look Mommy! I can make clouds!” Clap and POOF! (LeBron James, I blame you.)

I started to open my mouth. But then I stopped myself. I took a deep breath. My flour-covered angel was smiling at me. All I could do was smile back. And we both started laughing.

Life’s Messy Moments

My poor kitchen was a mess. Like a big, white, mess. But that’s what life’s about, right? Life’s unexpected messy moments that you share with your kids. The memories they take with them.

Messy Moments Kids In the Kitchen Pledge — Look at those guilty hands.

The mess was bigger in my head than it actually was to clean it up. All it took was wiping the excess flour with a dry paper towel, turning on the robot vacuum to take care of the floor, and grabbing my trusty Pledge® Lemon Clean Furniture Spray to easily get my wood table looking normal again. It took longer to wiggle the Little Made Man out of that flour-covered shirt than it did to get my kitchen clean.

Don’t let a little (or a potentially big) mess deny you the magic of shared giggles with your kids. Re-train your brain to not freak out. These messy moments are the ones they will remember and the ones you’ll cherish. I know I’m not going to remember the cake, but I AM going to remember that little boy and his flour “clouds” smiling at me from behind that flour-covered table.

What are your messy moments? Don’t have any? Go ahead, I’m giving you permission to make a big, giant mess. Just have fun. It’s easier to clean than you think, and the memories will be worth it.

Pledge Lemon Clean MessyMoments — Same table, post Pledge® Lemon Clean clean up

Pledge® Lemon Clean Furniture Spray can be used for furniture cleaning all around the house to quickly clean, condition and protect–all while leaving behind the classic, fresh lemon Pledge® scent. Use it on surfaces, including wood, laminate, stainless steel, leather, marble, granite, and plastic. And you can pick it up online or in store on your next Walmart trip.